Greed (1924) Erich von Stroheim

[moviemaker]

It's a travesty this has not been released. Hoping to rectify that in some small way by creating a thread dedicated to this silent masterpiece. I know it influenced PT Anderson There Will Be Blood and Orson Welles' Citizen Kane, among others.



Greed is a silent film with English intertitles based on Frank Norris' 1899 novel McTeague. It was released on December 4, 1924.

Director: Erich von Stroheim
Screenplay: Erich von Stroheim, June Mathis, Frank Norris, and Joseph Farnham
Production design: Erich von Stroheim
Editing: Erich von Stroheim, Frank Hull, Rex Ingram, Grant Whytock, June Mathis, and Joseph W. Farnham
Cinematography: William H. Daniels and Ben F. Reynolds
Music: William Axt
Cast: Gibson Gowland, ZaSu Pitts, and Jean Hersholt

I know it's been in the public domain for a few years now, but I'm hoping WB Archives takes the leap and does a proper release. Maybe Classicflix Studios might put out a blu-ray similar to their excellent release of Capra's Meet John Doe.

In the meantime, here are a few versions on YouTube:


Greed (1924) - 2023 Remaster (2 hour version)

Greed (1924) 2023 Remaster - YouTube

Greed (1924) - Original 4 hour version

Greed (1924) | Erich von Stroheim | Full Film (HD) - YouTube

[ilenewoodsfan99]

I would definitely pre-order an official Greed release as soon as it iss available. Sadly, no word on it from what I remember.

[BluBonnet]

It is absolutely unfathomable that they haven't announced the 100th anniversary IMAX re-release or something...

[Streetlight]

Originally Posted by BluBonnet

It is absolutely unfathomable that they haven't announced the 100th anniversary IMAX re-release or something...

Hard to promote an IMAX movie where a good portion of it are stills from lost footages.

[BluBonnet]

Originally Posted by Streetlight

Hard to promote an IMAX movie where a good portion of it are stills from lost footages.

[Wabbit Season]

I'm glad I am not the only person who's annoyed that this hasn't been released on bluray or 4k.
I'd also like to see The Crowd (1928) and The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse (1921) released as well.

[moviemaker]

Originally Posted by Wabbit Season

I'm glad I am not the only person who's annoyed that this hasn't been released on bluray or 4k.
I'd also like to see The Crowd (1928) and The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse (1921) released as well.

I own The Crowd on a Chinese DVD. It's criminal these films have not been given a proper release.

[Poya]

This movie has a weird legacy. Stroheim had to edit out the more racist elements of the book because he was appalled at how much it was entrenched in US society at the time.

Then, later on, when he was accused of his film being misogynistic by Mayer, he said "all women are *****s!", and Mayer decked him for that. Stroheim considered suing but he knew he'd lose.

Oh? And the OP forgot the film also influenced FFC's The Godfather flicks.

[moviemaker]

Originally Posted by Poya

This movie has a weird legacy. Stroheim had to edit out the more racist elements of the book because he was appalled at how much it was entrenched in US society at the time.

Then, later on, when he was accused of his film being misogynistic by Mayer, he said "all women are *****s!", and Mayer decked him for that. Stroheim considered suing but he knew he'd lose.

Oh? And the OP forgot the film also influenced FFC's The Godfather flicks.

I didn't forget. I just never mentioned any influences.